Korean helmer Park Chan-wook's Old Boy is not just another chop socky action flick, but "a sadistic masterpiece" that scooped the Grand Jury Prize at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival. Choi Min-sik plays the title role of a man bent on revenge after he's kidnapped and held hostage by a faceless enemy for 15 years.

Getting Too Old, Boy...

This two-disc edition comes packed with interviews, creative insights and even a few laugh-out loud anecdotes. In Flashback, Choi Min-sik reveals that he regularly fell asleep on set because of the exhausting shooting schedule - and often in the middle of takes! In case you think he's exaggerating, behind-the-scenes footage catches him in the act: face down in a bed of shattered glass.

Elsewhere the filmmakers discuss the process of adapting and updating the original comicbook by introducing unexpected twists, eg throwing in an incest subplot. In another featurette dedicated to Production Design, even Choi's hairstyle comes under scrutiny as part of a discussion about balancing the noir ambience with "surreal and exaggerated" elements. There's also a look at scoring and the CG effects that went into creating a nightmarish scene where Choi is attacked by ants.

Completing this behind-the-scenes section is an inside look at the whirlwind that was The Cannes Film Festival 2004. Here cast and crew are exposed to the evil that is the international press junket and lap up the heady experience of walking the red carpet. "I felt like I was the president of a nation," coos actress Kang Hye-jeong. You can hear more from Kang and her co-stars in a separate batch of interviews, along with a UK exclusive chat with Park Chan-wook.

Old Boy, New Tricks

Apparently Mr Chan-wook can't get enough of talking about Old Boy as he participates in no less than three audio commentaries. One teams him with cinematographer Jeong-hun Jeong and another with his principal players, but the best of the bunch is the track he hosts alone. Having co-written the script, he talks in great detail about why he made certain dramatic choices as well as giving technical information on how he achieved the film's distinctive look. With reference to lighting, sound effects, and even the colour palette, he explains that, "contrast is one of the most important concepts for this film".

Naturally, he also provides commentary for ten deleted scenes. These include a visceral fight sequence that pits Choi Min-sik against an army of prison guards and a hilarious moment where he storms into a restaurant and flatly tells the first person he sees: "I want to eat."

It's rare that a cult film comes accompanied with such a wealth of bonus material and manages to avoid pointless piffle, which is why Old Boy feels all the more shiny and new on DVD.

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